A new era of Doctor Who will bring with it an old convention, as eleventh Doctor Matt Smith's face will reportedly be featured in the opening titles. Is it possible to be nostalgic for something that hasn't happened yet?

All the Doctors from Patrick Troughton to Sylvester McCoy had their faces superimposed on their respective time tunnels and/or star fields. Generally speaking, the images were from photos taken just after the actors were cast in the role, which meant they often looked a bit ridiculous and less and less like the Doctor as the years passed.

Easily the silliest of these title images was Sylvester McCoy's, for which his face was inexplicably painted silver and he was made to wink at the screen. It really has to be seen (or reseen) to be believed:

This all may sound like a rather minor change, but I have to admit I was slightly disappointed way back in 2005 when the new series's opening titles didn't feature a crappy picture of a shell-shocked Christopher Eccleston. For whatever reason, I find this silly little convention to be an important part of the original show's charm. With all the other classic parts of the series's history already having been revived, this is one element I'm very glad to see make a comeback.